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What to see in 1 or 2 days in Zhangjiajie | Avatar Mountains in China
Zhangjiajie, located in Hunan province, is a landscape that It's hard to believe it's real, seems like something out of a dream. That's what James Cameron must have thought too when he decided to be inspired by him to create the famous floating avatar mountains in Pandora.
It is one of the stops in China that we tourists do not want to skip, that is why we tell you in detail What to see in 1 or 2 days in Zhangjiajie and more useful information about how to get there, prices or what is the best area to stay. Although the images that are usually seen are always the same, in reality the National Park is quite large with a lot to see and do in it.
How to get to to Avatar Mountains National Park, Zhangjiajie
Zhangjiajie is located in the southeast of China, far from big cities like Beijing or Shanghai. But due to its tourist importance it is a very common stop on most China travel itineraries. Area It is well connected, have a International Airport (DYG) and Bullet Train Station so it is not difficult to get to Zhangjiajie.
How to get to Zhangjiajie from Chongqing
One of the most important cities near Zhangjiajie Park is ChongqingIf you don't have it in your plans, I recommend you visit it, we loved it.
The fastest way to get from Chongqing to Zhangjiajie is by plane as it has daily flights that connect both cities. The cheapest and most common way is to go by train to Zhangjiajie, is the option we chose. We recommend rreserve it online to know what time your train really leaves and not waste a lot of time.
How to get to Zhangjiajie from Fenghuang
Another of the most touristic places in this region is the traditional Fenghuang Village, which is usually visited just before or after going to Zhangjiajie. This tour is by train and you should take it at Fenghuanggucheng station. There are many trains a day and the journey takes 1 hour.
How to get to Zhangjiajie from Changsha
Changsha is the largest city in the Zhangjiajie area and it is very common to land there or arrive by train from other areas of China. Thanks to its proximity to the Park, train from Changsha to Zhangjiajie places are usually full of tourists. The journey takes only 2 hours.
⚠️ Previously there was no bullet train station and many travelers arrived by bus, keep in mind that the information on many blogs is outdated.
Although Zhangjiajie National Park is named after the city, it is located 40 minutes away from it. main entrance is in Wulingyuan And to get there you can take the bus from the centre or from the train station itself (exit on the right). The price is 12¥ (1,5€) and they leave approximately every half hour.
Where to stay to visit the Avatar mountains
We recommend you stay in Wulingyuan if you are interested in being close to the Avatar Mountains, from your hotel you can walk to the entrance of the National Park. In addition, we thought the town had charm surrounded by mountains and with a small night market.
If your flight or train leaves very early, I recommend staying overnight in Zhangjiajie. we tell you more en Where to stay in Zhangjiajie to visit the Avatar Mountains.
How to visit zhangjiajie
This is the main thing you need to know to visit Zhangjiajie National Park in China↓
How much does it cost to visit Zhangjiajie?
Within the National Park there are 3 main attractions with different tickets for each of them, and they are not exactly cheap, especially during the high season months.
The entry for Zhangjiajie National Forest Park It is valid for 4 consecutive days and gives you access to the entire Avatar Mountains Scenic Area, trails and buses to get around the facility. Cable cars and elevators are paid separately.
- March to November: 228¥ (30 €)
- December to March: 148¥ (20 €)
Access to the Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon costs 118¥ (€16) and gives access to the trails of the Grand Canyon, but not to the famous glass bridge, the largest in the world, crossing it takes 141¥ (18€) additional.
And the third is the Tianmen Mountain, known for having Heaven's door, a giant natural hole in which someone thought it would be a good idea to put escalators. Entry costs 258¥ (35 €) and includes a cable car ride up and down. Once at the top there is another small cable car if you don't want/can't walk up that costs 25¥ and the escalator up to Heaven's Door is 16¥ (each way).
How many days does it take to visit Zhangjiajie?
If you want to do the 3 key points of the National Park you will need 3 days. In case you Just visit the Avatar mountains One day is enough, or a day and a half if you have it. We had planned to dedicatecarI had a full day and a morning, but they were forecasting a lot of rain for the second day so we decided to see "everything" in one day and despite being tired we were fine on time.
How to get around the Avatar mountains?
The Wulingyuan scenic area is very extensive, It is necessary to use internal transportation to explore it in one day. The buses are included in the entrance fee and are easy to use. However, the cable cars and elevator are an additional cost; the park is designed to encourage their use because the Chinese aren't particularly fond of hiking, only making exceptions for truly famous routes like the trekking in the Tiger Leap Gorge.
There are also trails to avoid the cable cars, and where you will almost certainly be alone. Although they are quite uneven, so we would not recommend them for the climb, especially if you only have one day to see all of Zhangjiajie.
We leave you the additional transport prices:
- Bailong Elevator: 65¥
- Tianzi Mountain Cable Car: 72¥ ✅ The most necessary to go up from Wulingyuan.
- Yangjiajie Cable Car: 76¥
- Yellow Stone Village Cable Car: ¥65
Zhangjiajie in 1 to date, route from Wulingyuan
If you only have one day as was our case this is the best route you can do to go through as many viewpoints as possible. In Zhangjiajie there are never enough viewpoints, you always want to stop to take one more photo!
Map of Zhangjiajie, Wulingyuan
We've attached a photo of the map they gave us at the hotel (which we couldn't find anywhere else). It was incredibly useful for finding our way around.carI've marked some things in yellow so you can better understand the map when I tell you what to see in zhangjiajie in a day.
What to see in zhangjiajie in a day
The ticket office and park entrance are only a 15-minute walk from Wulingyuan, so it is the best place to stay so you can arrive early. Zhangjiajie is open every day from 7:30 a.m. to 18:00 p.m., and it is best to get up early because there are usually long queues.
At the same entrance you take a bus to either take you to where the uphill path on foot begins, in that case it is the bus towards ““Golden Whip Stream” or the one who goes towards the Car Cables that It drops you off next to the Tianzi Mountain cable car. The ticket to the cable car is purchased where the bus drops you off.
We went by cable car, and we recommend doing it this way both for the unique views you have, and to make the most of your time if you only have one day in Zhangjiajie.
Tianzi Mountain
Upon reaching Tianzi Mountain you won't have the most spectacular views, but You start to get an idea of what's coming. Very close to the cable car there is a bus stop that takes you to the viewpoint area in 5 minutes.
We loved visiting the Tianzi Mountain viewpoints, despite not being the most popular, they are spectacular and there are fewer people than in other areas. In addition, many mornings a sea of clouds form in which the karst mountains appear, it usually happens first thing in the morning so Tianzi is the best place to see it.
Most locals visit the park in an organized group, so suddenly you see one viewpoint packed and the next completely empty. lOr the ideal is to walk and stop where there are no people, There are many but if you want to sign up for two Tianzi Sightseeing Platform y Yunqing Rock They were one of our favorites.
Yangjiajie, the least popular area of the Avatar Mountains
From Tianzi Mountain there is a bus that takes you to Yangjiajie (top left of the map) and takes about half an hour. Yangjiajie is possibly the least spectacular part of the park because the mountains are less eroded, are wider and some parts continue as if they were joined together without having formed narrow columns.
Anyway, I would recommend going. We spent about an hour touring the different viewpoints and then took another 9-minute bus to the jewel in the crown, Yuanjiajie.
Yuanjiajie, Hallelujah Mountain
This is the most famous area, and it doesn't surprise me. The landscapes are like something out of a movie and it really seems like the mountains are floating. Without a doubt, this area is the busiest, but at least when we visited it wasn't crazy crowded and we were able to enjoy it a lot.
Zhangjiajie Mountains They date back 400 million years, These unique pillars have been created through a process of erosion and sedimentation over millions of years, they were originally part of the seabed.
It is a network of well-maintained trails where there are carTVs indicating the most famous spots, so there is no loss. Of course, you can't miss Hallelujah, the highest mountain at 1074 meters. You also have to cross the bridge oldest in the world, These are two pillars that have a union, seeing it from a distance is truly impressive.
We spent around 3 hours exploring the area and being amazed by the formations, especially from the viewpoints called sandstone forest, or similar. These are large areas where you can see the immensity of pillars there are.
Descent with the Bailong Elevator or on foot
To head to the exit you can take the Bailong elevator or go down on foot, we recommend you walk down to connect with the Golden Whip, a trail that runs parallel to the river and allows you to have a different perspective of the mountains.
If you take the panoramic elevator just as you go down you will see the buses going back to Wulingyuan.
To make the descent on foot you have to go in the direction Black garden o Luancuan Slope (I have rounded it on the map). The beginning of the trail takes you through some viewpoints where we were completely alone and then the stairs begin toward the river. In total it took us just over an hour. making some stops, including one to see macaques, there are many, both on the way down and along the river!
The landscape in June was super green and we found it quite beautiful, even though the best part was in the river.
Golden Whip
When you finish the stairs you have two options, the shortest is to go towards Water Windin Four Gates, it takes an hour and from there buses leave for Wulingyuan. An alternative if you have time and energy is to go to Laomo Wan Square either directly or passing through Iron Bridge, Fairy Cave and other stops. Both routes are very clear on the map. For this second option, count about two hours or so.
From Laomo Wan there is a bus to Wulingyuan, but they are not part of the National Park, you will have to go outside to catch it. The price is 10¥.
Zhangjiajie in 2 days, route from Wulingyuan
With two full days, what I would do on day one is the same itinerary that I propose for zhangjiajie in 1 day, but either taking the elevator down or doing the mini tour of the Golden Whip.
To spend the morning of day two touring the entire Golden Whip and in the afternoon go to the Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon. Of course, there are more options, and Avatar Mountains Park is already big and beautiful enough to spend the whole two days there, but if you are a fan of adventure you can do both.
what to know before going to Zhangjiajie
Before finishing this guide we leave you some final recommendations of doubts that surely may arise, if you have any other do not hesitate to leave us a comment and we will try to help you.
- You don't need to bring food or snacks, there are shops and restaurants along the path.
- Accessibility is very good, (unfortunately) the entire National Park is paved. You can go with any comfortable shoes.
- In case of rain they sell raincoats and umbrellas, the weather is very humid so I recommend carrying your raincoat in your backpack.
- There can be a lot of people, I imagine you already know that, but to manage expectations... Most of them are large groups of Chinese and In high season it can be overwhelming. You will see suit rental sites typical, prepared photo stops and other things that would be unthinkable in other countries.
- It is highly recommended to get up early to avoid the queue at the ticket office and see some initial viewpoints with few people.
- If you stay in Wulingyuan there is a small night market which is great for dinner, and they sold a lot of fruit. It tasted great to us!
Do you dare to add the Avatar Mountains to your China itinerary? To see our experience in the Asian Giant you can see the Instagram Featured Stories and read our Guides for traveling to China updated.
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Hi! Thanks for the info, very useful! 🙂
Where did you buy your park tickets? Did you buy an all-inclusive ticket that included the cable car and elevator? Thanks!
Hi Bea,
We bought our cable car tickets directly at the park, but if you're traveling during peak season you can buy them online and skip the line at Trip: https://www.trip.com/things-to-do/list?searchkey=27&searchtype=1&Allianceid=4132073&SID=36998977&trip_sub1=&trip_sub3=D18180822
All the information is excellent. I think it is a very interesting destination.
Thank you very much for your comment Victor!!!